ORLANDO, Fla. – Two men were shot and killed early Wednesday during a New Year’s party inside an Orange County club, according to sheriff’s officials.
The double fatal shooting happened around 4:30 a.m. at The Spot Events on Edgewater Drive near Lee Road.
A 39-year-old man was taken to a hospital, where he died, officials said. His name has not been released. The other man, who has not yet been identified by deputies, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Orange County sheriff’s deputies said the men were in a VIP area of the club, which was about to close, when they were shot.
It’s not known what prompted the shooting or who opened fire.
About 250 people were in the club and several of them witnessed the shooting.
“I saw a group of guys walk toward the entrance where we came in from. They stopped, they turned around and they were facing the back and two guys were passing behind us as they were about to leave and they got shot,” witness Mona Roberts said.
“It was almost time to go home and we heard ‘bop, bop, bop’ and everyone started running. I thought (the shooting) was from the outside. I didn’t realize it was so close to us,” another witness said. “It hurt me to see those guys laying there like that. What’s hurting me even more is people kept trying to shake him and my friend said, ‘Don’t touch him.’”
#breaking: LARGE CRIME SCENE. Witnesses tell me 2 people were shot at Club Spot on Edgewater. One person just taken on a stretcher @news6wkmg pic.twitter.com/5HqOJLy9vK
— Justin Campbell (@JCampbellNews6) January 1, 2020
According to deputies, there were as many as seven security guards, three or four of whom were armed, at the club, but they only patrol outside. Patrons are not checked as they enter the club, sheriff’s officials said.
There’s no surveillance video of the the shooting, but deputies said they were interviewing several witnesses.
Orange County sheriff’s Sgt. Jamie Hoffman described the business as an after-hours club.
“They work under a county ordinance with a catering permit,” Hoffman said. “We haven’t had any major issues here before, but it’s a situation we deal with countywide.”
An investigation is ongoing.
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